Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God

[midnight armadillo]

The thread in GD on attempts at re-christianizing Mass. reminded me of this famous sermon by Jonathon Edwards from 1754 or so. Pat RObertson's got nothin' on this guy.

It's worth a read. It's long, but will curdle nearby milk if read outloud.

Here is a quote:

The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider, or
some loathsome insect over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked:
his wrath towards you burns like fire; he looks upon you as worthy of nothing
else, but to be cast into the fire; he is of purer eyes than to bear to have
you in his sight; you are ten thousand times more abominable in his eyes, than
the most hateful venomous serpent is in ours. You have offended him infinitely
more than ever a stubborn rebel did his prince; and yet it is nothing but his
hand that holds you from falling into the fire every moment. It is to be
ascribed to nothing else, that you did not go to hell the last night; that you
was suffered to awake again in this world, after you closed your eyes to sleep.
And there is no other reason to be given, why you have not dropped into hell
since you arose in the morning, but that God's hand has held you up. There is
no other reason to be given why you have not gone to hell, since you have sat
here in the house of God, provoking his pure eyes by your sinful wicked manner
of attending his solemn worship. Yea, there is nothing else that is to be given
as a reason why you do not this very moment drop down into hell.


Read the full text:
http://www.jonathanedwards.com/sermons/Warnings/sinners.htm